The 100% Sangiovese Testamatta is no mere curiosity as "one of the most original expressions of Sangiovese you will ever taste" (Wine Advocate), it also "has the race and the breed of Grand Cru Burgundy. Think of Romanee-Conti's La Tâche" (Wine Spectator).
Always high scoring, the 2018 tops the charts with Testamatta's highest score ever including the first perfect 100 from Decanter's Jane Anson. Tasted alongside many global icons such as Opus One, Solaia, Masseto and many more, Anson wrote that it was the 2018 Testamatta that stood out against everything else:
"This is a great wine, with scope and imagination that doesn't want to let you go. Genuinely stands out among the wines of the tasting, and these are a fine array of wines" – Jane Anson, Decanter
Finely textured, with a nuanced perfume that fills the glass and takes you to the intense underbrush of Tuscany. Succulent and yet savoury, this has a lilting freshness that is overlaid with ripe berry fruits, sage and white pepper spice, and clear minerality in terms of its scraping texture that makes your mouth water on the finish. Feels light and sculpted and yet has an intensity that skewers you to the spot. This is a great wine, with scope and imagination that doesn't want to let you go. Genuinely stands out among the wines of this tasting, and these are a fine array of wines. As with Colore, Bibi Graetz selects only old vines, the youngest 50 years old from five different vineyard sites across Tuscany, all farmed organically. Fermentations in open 225l barrels with natural yeasts and manual punch downs.
Drinking Window: 2024 - 2045
Reviewer Name: Jane Anson
Review Date: 27th August 2020
Very subtle aromas of cherries, bark, black truffles and flowers. Hints of crushed stones. It’s full-bodied, yet very tight and solid with a very tight, minerally structure. Very long and intense. Racy and bright at the end. Powerful, orange-peel and citrus-fruit undertones. Salty and minerally. This needs time to develop in the bottle. Extremely structured. A wine not to touch until after 2023.
Review Date: 20th July 2020
The 2018 Testamatta shows elegant Sangiovese purity and transparency, starting with delicate wild berry and blueberry tones and finishing long with pretty accents of crushed limestone and a touch of campfire ash. In the glass, the wine is radiant and vivid with a luminous ruby or garnet color. Oak use is reduced to a bare minimum, with barrels that are up to their 16th year of use. "The older they are, the better," Bibi explains. As the wine opens in the glass, it presents pretty lilac and violet. This wine represents a blend of fruit from various sites (all with old vines that are farmed organically) across the region of Tuscany. The northern-most sites close to Florence tend to add the floral notes that are so characteristic of this cool vintage (which saw a bit more rain than average and extra work in the vineyards to kept these vines healthy). I visited the vineyards with Bibi in 2018 and remember how beautiful the grapes appeared on the vines. Much of the fruit used here comes from the Vigna del Cancello in Casciano del Murlo, which is midway between Siena and Montalcino. These southern sites give the wine its backbone and tannins. Bibi Graetz tells me that he struggled to create the blend for this 60,000-bottle release. He decided on a final blend, only to change his mind and re-blend two and a half months later. His second stab was specifically aimed at capturing finesse and softening the wine's tannic imprint. Indeed, the wine ultimately offers more in length (with fresh fruit flavors and bright acidity) than it does in power or mid-palate. The finish is silky, long and very fine.
Drinking Window: 2022 - 2042
Reviewer Name: Monica Larner
Review Date: 20th August 2020
- Details
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- Year 2018
- Colour Red
- Country Italy
- Region Tuscany
- Sub Region Toscana
- Designation
- Classification
- Pack Size 6x75cl
- ABV 13.5°
- Drinking Window 2024 - 2045
- Drinking Recommendation Not Ready
- LWIN 110012120180600750
- Reviews (3)
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100 Decanter
Finely textured, with a nuanced perfume that fills the glass and takes you to the intense underbrush of Tuscany. Succulent and yet savoury, this has a lilting freshness that is overlaid with ripe berry fruits, sage and white pepper spice, and clear minerality in terms of its scraping texture that makes your mouth water on the finish. Feels light and sculpted and yet has an intensity that skewers you to the spot. This is a great wine, with scope and imagination that doesn't want to let you go. Genuinely stands out among the wines of this tasting, and these are a fine array of wines. As with Colore, Bibi Graetz selects only old vines, the youngest 50 years old from five different vineyard sites across Tuscany, all farmed organically. Fermentations in open 225l barrels with natural yeasts and manual punch downs.
Drinking Window: 2024 - 2045
Reviewer Name: Jane Anson
Review Date: 27th August 2020
97 James SucklingVery subtle aromas of cherries, bark, black truffles and flowers. Hints of crushed stones. It’s full-bodied, yet very tight and solid with a very tight, minerally structure. Very long and intense. Racy and bright at the end. Powerful, orange-peel and citrus-fruit undertones. Salty and minerally. This needs time to develop in the bottle. Extremely structured. A wine not to touch until after 2023.
Review Date: 20th July 2020
94 Wine AdvocateThe 2018 Testamatta shows elegant Sangiovese purity and transparency, starting with delicate wild berry and blueberry tones and finishing long with pretty accents of crushed limestone and a touch of campfire ash. In the glass, the wine is radiant and vivid with a luminous ruby or garnet color. Oak use is reduced to a bare minimum, with barrels that are up to their 16th year of use. "The older they are, the better," Bibi explains. As the wine opens in the glass, it presents pretty lilac and violet. This wine represents a blend of fruit from various sites (all with old vines that are farmed organically) across the region of Tuscany. The northern-most sites close to Florence tend to add the floral notes that are so characteristic of this cool vintage (which saw a bit more rain than average and extra work in the vineyards to kept these vines healthy). I visited the vineyards with Bibi in 2018 and remember how beautiful the grapes appeared on the vines. Much of the fruit used here comes from the Vigna del Cancello in Casciano del Murlo, which is midway between Siena and Montalcino. These southern sites give the wine its backbone and tannins. Bibi Graetz tells me that he struggled to create the blend for this 60,000-bottle release. He decided on a final blend, only to change his mind and re-blend two and a half months later. His second stab was specifically aimed at capturing finesse and softening the wine's tannic imprint. Indeed, the wine ultimately offers more in length (with fresh fruit flavors and bright acidity) than it does in power or mid-palate. The finish is silky, long and very fine.
Drinking Window: 2022 - 2042
Reviewer Name: Monica Larner
Review Date: 20th August 2020
- Producer
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About Bibi Graetz
Born into a family of prodigious artists in the gorgeous region of Tuscany in central Italy, Bibi Graetz experienced a phenomenon well-traversed by a number of the world’s greatest vignerons – he fell in love with the terroir and vines of his homeland.
Having grown up on the hill of Fiesole, overlooking Florence, Graetz felt the irresistible pull to found his eponymous winery in 2000 in this very area. Not content with such a commitment to Tuscany, the artist even built and moved his family to the new winery, called Aurora, situated in the main square of Fiesole.
Viniculture
Graetz found himself particularly fascinated by old vines – and as such has assembled one of the largest holdings of old vineyard plots in the entire region. An impressive feat in a mere 20 years given the head start rival Super Tuscans have. The focus on ancient aspects of Italian winemaking has led the rebellious winemaker to shun both traditionalist Chianti constraints, as well as the established Super Tuscan behemoths stridently pursuing Bordeaux blends.
Bibi Graetz masterfully combines aspects of both schools of thought – proudly championing the traditional varietals of Sangiovese, Canaiolo and Colorino, whilst utilising artisanal techniques such as spontaneous fermentation, manual punching-down and open-top barriques.
A maverick figure on the Super Tuscan scene, Colore is the flagship wine of this enigmatic winery. Colore is a pure expression of Tuscany, with traditional varieties blended in glorious harmony. Sangiovese provides structure and breath-taking power, Colorino carries pure fruits and fine tannins whilst Canaiolo is the mineral backbone. Sourced from three vineyards in Lamole, Siena and Vincigliata, a handful of the finest barrels representing a fraction of the entire harvest are selected to become Colore. This is unbelievably rare, with only 225 cases produced.
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Bibi Graetz Testamatta - Offers on Cru
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Show Investment Rating GuideWine Rating is intended to show the quality of the wine from an investment perspective. It takes into account the prices achieved by the producer, the quality of the vintage and the critics' scores for this wine. AAA is the best rating, and B the most speculative.
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